Pulling the curtain back: The scariest part of this whole publishing process--besides release day--is when I send that first set of eARCs to my trusted beta readers. Will they love it? Hate it? Tell me it's time to resume the old editing job... *chews nails*

That's where we are in the process now, and the good news is so far early response has been very positive. And I REALLY got excited when two of my beta readers sent me long, happy blurbs--!!

I'm happy to unveil a few early endorsements for you, reader-friends. See what you think~

"Undertowpulled me under and left me gasping for air and wanting so much more. I couldn’t stop thinking about these characters after Dragonfly, and now I’ll never be able to get a shirtless Bill Kyser out of my head. A sexy summer read that won’t disappoint." --Magan Vernon, bestselling author of The Only Exception"Undertowis amazing! The characters are lovely, but they're also flawed--that sort of 'realness' and honesty breathes life into them and is truly refreshing to come across as a reader. This is such a fantastic story with a unique execution. --Kristin Fuller, Goodreads reviewer

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

July 18 is the official release date for Undertow, #2 in the Dragonfly series.

Reader-friends, I confess: I really love this book, even though it focuses on a dark topic--the events that led to the death of Meg Kyser and why they're being kept a secret.

Of course, you have the hopeful start of Anna & Julian's budding relationship for balance, and the bad stuff all happened in the past (revealed Rashomon style, link, through the three journals).

I guess I like it because it's so sadly real and human. Three young people, two highly ambitious, who start out with good intentions (for the most part) and then make mistakes, try to control each other, try to fix their mistakes, make more, mess up a whole bunch of lives... yanno.

I guess in a way, it's similar to the Truth books because there's a message in Undertow. At the same time, it should appeal to Rouge fans, since it's New Adult--meaning the characters are post-high school/college age and it contains more mature content. (Of course, it's not erotica.)

So without further ado, here's the first picture teaser--and let me know what you think:

Falling in love will pull you under...-Bill Kyser has a plan to take the sandy farms of his hometown and turn them into a world-class tourist destination--and become a billionaire in the process. -Alexandra "Lexy" LaSalle has a plan to change her life by becoming a world-famous artist. -Meg Weaver has a plan to hold onto Bill no matter what she has to do.Three friends, three dreams.One fatal decision will change all their lives forever.

In Dragonfly, Bill Kyser gave Anna the three journals that held the story behind the powerful developer's seclusion and the damaged lives of his family members.

Anna hopes to find a way for Julian to know the truth, but as she digs deeper into the tragic events of the past, she realizes silence could be their only option.

Now she's in an alliance with the man she formerly feared. And if Julian finds out what she knows, she could lose the boy she's starting to love for good.

When life hands you lemons, sometimes you have to say screw the lemons and bail.Seventeen-year-old Bentley Evans had it all. Then her Dad got laid off. Now she has to move across town to a small apartment and leave her life of luxury for public school and a job at the local burger place. Just when her world seems like it's crumbling she finds solace in the unlikely punk boy next door, Kai Rowe. But as their relationship blossoms, a jealous ex-girlfriend and a secret to tell that threatens to bring disaster back into Bentley’s life.

Magan Vernon is a Young Adult and New Adult writer who lives with her family in the insurance capital of the world.

She is in a very serious, fake relationship with Adam Lambert and constantly asks her husband to wear guyliner. He still refuses. She also believes her husband is secretly an alien, disguised as a southern gentleman.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Undertow revisions are drawing to a close, and I have to confess, the second book in a series is always the scariest.

What are readers expecting? Will they be let down if I don't give them that? But I don't have psychic powers!!!

In the meantime--apart from that freakout I'm doing my best to ignore so my revision process doesn't completely shut down--I'm having tons of fun with this tour and would like to Thank everyone who's participated and also the lovely KP Simmons of Inkslinger PR (link) for making it possible.

Monday, June 10, 2013

Dragonflywas the first book I ever wrote and tried to sell to agents back in 2009.

Back then, it wasn't perfect, my novel-writing skills were poor. I'd only been a journalist, an editor, and a former English major and teacher.

But I got a lot of full requests, and polite rejections. I think 15 was the final number before I put it away in 2010. Some pretty big names, too (Paige Wheeler, Kevan Lyons, Kelly Sonnack, etc.)

I loved the story, the characters, the journey. I loved writing it, and I couldn't wait for everyone to read it. In the year I'd spent waiting to hear back from those guys, I'd written Undertow (#2), Watercolor (#3), and started Mosaic (#4)...

...and then I read Nathan Bransford's advice: If you can't sell the first book in a series, why are you still writing it? (Basically, stop and write something new.)

He was right. And it hurt so bad.

But I put my dream books in the virtual drawer, dusted myself off, and wrote The Truth About Faking. Then, while I was shopping it, I wrote Rouge. And I got a literary agent. And in 2011, I got an offer for a book deal with a Big 6 publisher.

In the meantime, several of the lovely critique partners, advice sharers, and friends I'd made through this blog had started self-publishing. It was still early in the indie game, and it was still considered a huge risk.

We were told that if you self-published, you could kiss any traditional dreams goodbye. We were told, the traditional guys wouldn't touch an idie book with a 10-foot pole. We were told you instantly became a pariah.

But my friends were risk-takers. One--Susan Kaye Quinn--had gone the small press route with her first book, a YA romance, and after that experience, she took the reins and went independent with her very successful science fiction book Open Minds.

And after my agent couldn't sell The Truth About Faking, I decided to self-publish it. In Sept. 2011 it came out, and it's still selling very well today.

Why am I tell you all this?

Because it broke my heart when I put Dragonfly in the drawer. I believed that book was dead, and I'd never have the joy of sharing it with readers... and I was wrong.

Granted, in February when I decided to pull it out again, it still had all those first novel problems. I had to take a sledgehammer to it, break it apart, put it back together, remove all the boring parts, beef up the tension, polish out the dialogue...

But my dream came true last week. And every time someone emails me that they love the story or they can't wait for July 18, I get a little misty. So much is changing in publishing, and it's a wonderful time to be a writer.

Follow the path that's right for you, traditional or indie, but no matter what, hold onto your dream. Be persistent. Don't listen to what "they" say. And for goodness sake, just keep swimming!

Friday, June 7, 2013

"Five of Five stars! HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! From the first page I was captivated by Dragonfly because it is a read like no other. There are so many twists and turns and secrets that with every page turn I was jumping for joy because I needed to get my mind wrapped around everything that was happening."

“Gossip Girl meets VC Andrews in this contemporary family saga. Love, lies, and betrayal become the new normal when Anna enters the world of Jack and Lucy Kyser.” –Magan Vernon, international bestselling author of The Only Exception"Angst, longing, jealousy, mystery, secrets, love triangles, sexy scenes! Could you even ask for more? Well you can because it is also very well written and fast paced. Great book to dive into poolside, but I will warn you may get so swept up in it you may end up with some sun burn so I STRONGLY suggest you invest in some sunscreen as well as a copy of Dragonfly." --Nichole, 5-star Goodreads review"I truly enjoyed this one! I thought the characters were intriguing, the mystery and story were interesting and definitely have ME WANTING MORE!!!!!!!" --Mandy, The Romance Bookie

Three bad things I learned this year:-People you trust lie, even parents. -That hot guy, the one who’s totally into you, he might not be the one. -Things are not always how they appear.Three good things I learned this year:-Best friends are always there for you, even when they’re far away. -That other hot guy, the one who remembers your birthday, he just might be the one. -Oh, and things are not always how they appear.

Anna Sanders expected an anonymous (and uneventful) senior year until she crossed paths with rich-and-sexy Jack Kyser and his twin sister Lucy.

Pulling Anna into their extravagant lifestyle on the Gulf Coast, Lucy pushed Anna outside her comfort zone, and Jack showed her feelings she’d never experienced... Until he mysteriously withdrew.

Anna turned to her internship at the city paper and to her old attraction for Julian, a handsome local artist and rising star, for distraction. But both led to her discovery of a decades-old secret closely guarded by the twins’ distant, single father.

“Gossip Girl meets VC Andrews in this contemporary family saga. Love, lies, and betrayal become the new normal when Anna enters the world of Jack and Lucy Kyser.” –Magan Vernon, international bestselling author of The Only Exception"Angst, longing, jealousy, mystery, secrets, love triangles, sexy scenes! Could you even ask for more? Well you can because it is also very well written and fast paced. Great book to dive into poolside, but I will warn you may get so swept up in it you may end up with some sun burn so I STRONGLY suggest you invest in some sunscreen as well as a copy of Dragonfly." --Nichole, 5-star Goodreads review"I truly enjoyed this one! I thought the characters were intriguing, the mystery and story were interesting and definitely have ME WANTING MORE!!!!!!!" --Mandy, The Romance Bookie

Three bad things I learned this year:-People you trust lie, even parents. -That hot guy, the one who’s totally into you, he might not be the one. -Things are not always how they appear.Three good things I learned this year:-Best friends are always there for you, even when they’re far away. -That other hot guy, the one who remembers your birthday, he just might be the one. -Oh, and things are not always how they appear.

Anna Sanders expected an anonymous (and uneventful) senior year until she crossed paths with rich-and-sexy Jack Kyser and his twin sister Lucy.

Pulling Anna into their extravagant lifestyle on the Gulf Coast, Lucy pushed Anna outside her comfort zone, and Jack showed her feelings she’d never experienced... Until he mysteriously withdrew.

Anna turned to her internship at the city paper and to her old attraction for Julian, a handsome local artist and rising star, for distraction. But both led to her discovery of a decades-old secret closely guarded by the twins’ distant, single father.

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LEIGH TALBERT MOORE

Welcome to the original Blog and now website for Author Leigh Talbert Moore.

Blog posts date back to 2010, so feel free to poke around through old posts chronicling my path to publication, from when I started as a traditional author with a literary agent through breaking out into the Indie world with my book The Truth About Faking!

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"Heartache, sadness, and just enough moments of humor. I found myself holding my breath one minute with so much anticipation for the next moments. Moore did a beautiful job with this book.” —Somertime Book Blog

"A fantastic end to a series I've thoroughly enjoyed. I love the transition of high school love to college love to EPIC LOVE... There were feels galore and my broken heart was put back together in the end." —Kim F., Amazon